Recon Logistics Freight Management Blog

Limited Access - Those additional charges shippers loath are getting more complicated. The accessorial charge is no longer a catch-all for destinations carriers deem out of the ordinary.

Tags: Accessorials, Detention Fees, LTL, Freight Rates, LTL Carrier Cost, Late Delivery, Advance Ship Notice, freight cost, freight reporting, cost per pound, Limited Access, Freight Technology, TMS

Have you looked at the P&L recently and noticed freight making a greater impact than in previous years? When you reach out to those who manage freight in your company, what sort of responses do you get?  

Tags: Accessorials, Detention Fees, LTL, Freight Rates, LTL Carrier Cost, Late Delivery, Advance Ship Notice, freight cost, freight reporting, cost per pound

Does it seem like shipment notifications are just for E-Commerce or Amazon? Not the case- and using Advance Ship Notifications can impact multiple segments of your business.

Tags: Accessorials, Detention Fees, LTL, Freight Rates, Late Delivery, Customer Service, ASN, Advance Ship Notice

As the less-than-truckload landscape changes rapidly and the market hurtles down the path towards tighter capacity, and higher costs – one must wonder what all of this means for today’s shippers and 3PLs.  The days of the time-rich, doting sales rep; bringing pizza by the shipping office and shaking hands or slapping backs every other day are arguably behind us.  Not every problem can be solved with a wink, nudge or quick phone call.

Tags: Freight Terms, Density, LTL Pricing, Accessorials, Freight Tariffs, LTL, Freight Rates, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Freight Data, Logistics, LTL Carrier, Reweigh, Reclass, Carrier performance, Freight Audit, Freight Pay

How many calls do your customer service representatives (CSRs) have to make related to shipping?

• Get a rate quote
• Confirm a customer has a loading dock
• Provide a status update (tracking)
• Provide instructions on how to handle damage

Here are a few tools that can reduce the burden of freight on your CSRs that a good Transportation Management System (TMS) ought to provide:

Tags: Freight Terms, Density, LTL Pricing, Accessorials, Freight Tariffs, LTL, Freight Rates, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Freight Data, Logistics, LTL Carrier, Reweigh, Reclass, Carrier performance, Freight Audit, Freight Pay

Tired of fighting with Carriers over discounts, minimum charges and accessorials? Given the economy, capacity pressures, and LTL carrier's current perceived leverage, you may be more successful reducing your freight cost by taking a deep dive into your organization's shipping processes.

Tags: Freight Terms, Density, LTL Pricing, Accessorials, Freight Tariffs, LTL, Freight Rates, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Freight Data, Logistics, LTL Carrier, Reweigh, Reclass, Carrier performance, Freight Audit, Freight Pay

Recently, an article from the Journal of Commerce (JOC), "Tech Transforming payment services into shipper intelligence," explored the evolution of freight audit and pay firms to data managers. Surprisingly, the article seems to suggest audit firms are creating a new space, but are they?

Leads me to question, if you are using a 3rd party to audit and pay carriers on your behalf, what are today's reasonable expectations?

Tags: Freight Terms, Density, LTL Pricing, Accessorials, Freight Tariffs, LTL, Freight Rates, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Freight Data, Logistics, LTL Carrier, Reweigh, Reclass, Carrier performance, Freight Audit, Freight Pay

One of the most identifiable differences between Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) and Full Truckload (FTL) Carriers is the amount of freight you can move at one time. Far too often shippers will throw 7-8 pallets onto an LTL trailer and think nothing of it; it’s not a full truckload, right? Big... mistake!

Tags: Freight Terms, Density, LTL Pricing, Overlength, Freight Tariffs, LTL, Freight Rates, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Logistics, LTL Carrier, Volume Loads, Bill of Lading

If we were given a dime for every time we hear the frustration, "but it's supposed to be 2 day transit!" As frequently as we hear it, and as poor as LTL carriers' timeliness of delivery numbers look, suggested transit times are not changing and shippers need to plan accordingly. 

Tags: LTL, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Logistics, LTL Service, LTL Carrier, Freight Guarantee, Expedited, Carrier performance, Late Delivery, Standard Transit Time, LTL Transit Time

"The carrier missed the pickup yet they still count it delivered on time?"

Can you rely on carrier stats? What are your real and most meaningful LTL carrier performance stats?

Tags: LTL, Freight Management, Ship Smarter, Freight Data, Logistics, LTL Service, LTL Carrier, transportation management, Carrier performance